This week I’m back on the restaurant trail for the Savour Kilkenny Food Provenance Award. It’s a new award for the 2019 festival that’s seeking to recognise eateries in Kilkenny for their work with local and regional produce and producers through seasonal cooking.

This week it’s the turn of Petronella Restaurant on the Butterslip in Kilkenny City centre, and to owner Frank Curran.

Frank is an absolute gem of a host, he’s passionate about food and what goes on the plate, a joy that’s matched by his enthusiasm for the building you’ll find Petronella in when you get to hear the stories in person.

Here we're chatting over lunch for a walk through his #tastekilkenny offerings, his Cartoon Saloon inspired menu choices, working with his chefs and suppliers to plan menus and more.

If you're involved in the food sector at any level, I'd love to hear from you. Email me - [email protected] - to share your story and start the conversation.

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So this is Ken On Food episode 14, I’m Ken McGuire and this time out we’re going to hear from a few people.

Rory Nolan from Anocht Restaurant drops into studio to have a quick word about what’s coming up at their Savour Kilkenny dining night at the end of October. 

I had a chance encounter with a lady carrying a crate of water on one of the hottest days of the year and I couldn’t let her go without having a word about their operation in Borrisoleigh.

But to kick this podcast off, I chat with Eva Milka of Gaelic Escargot.

Based in Carlow, Eva and her partner are running Ireland’s first snail farm and the country’s only research and development centre for the production of escargot.

If you've got a story to tell, an event you would like to talk about, then drop me an email - [email protected] and let's talk.

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Last week was all about Billy Byrne’s but this week it’s all about Paris Texas.

It’s High Street’s only full scale bar and restaurant and it’s typically packed, whether full of tourists on a Wednesday night as they lap up the music – and I played myself there for a year or two – or locals in for dinner right across the weekend, Paris Texas is a buzzing spot when it comes to food.

Go back a few podcasts to meeting the folks in Cleere’s with a simple soup and sandwich menu and you’re at the other end of the scale in Paris Texas. Massive staff, four pages of a broad reaching menu with something for everyone.

To find out what makes Paris Texas work, I talk to two people.

First up is owner Pat Crotty who’s been leading the charge of late for local suppliers for their menu, and he’s followed by Carlow native and chef Keith Kelly who walks me through a local pork belly dish.

Get in touch and share your food story - email [email protected]

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Bringing an authentic slice of Italian cuisine to one of Kilkenny's busiest night spots, I sit down with chef Toni Bottoni this week to find out what's on the menu at Billy Byrne's.

You’ll find Billy Byrne’s a stone’s throw from the bus and train station in Kilkenny and over the last ten or fifteen years the pub has gone from “old man pub” for want of a better phrase, to a bustling hub of movies, live music and a wealth of food, making it one of the busiest spots in Kilkenny at the weekend.

Where previously the cooking was done in a double-decker bus in the beer garden, everything is now done in house under Toni’s eye – I’ll let her explain.

To share your food story, get in touch - email [email protected] and let's talk.

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This week I'm joined in studio by Morgan Ging of Ballykeefe Distillery, located roughly ten minutes outside of Kilkenny City, producing award-winning spirits from the family farm.

While they've been scooping up the accolades for their gin, vodka and poteen, the countdown is on to the first Ballykeefe whiskey.

I chat with Morgan about that, transitioning from farming to spirit production and how he's been able to give back to his local community and support those supporting him.

Share your food story - let's talk. Email [email protected].

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We're into double figures for the podcast, and for episode ten I'm joined on the phone by Kitty Colchester of Second Nature Oils, based at Drumeen Farm in north Kilkenny.

We're talking organic, bee-friendly rapeseed oil production and what things are like in her corner of the food world.

Find out more online at secondnatureoils.com or if you'd like to get in touch with me and share your food story, email [email protected].

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This week I'm on the trail again for the Savour Kilkenny Food Festival and their Food Provenance Award for 2019. The stop, Statham's By Pembroke on Patrick Street, Kilkenny, with executive chef Damian Finnegan.

We sit down over a Goatsbridge trout lunch to find out what's on the menu, what he's looking for in producers and what's happening in the world of Statham's.

For more, check kenonfood.com or to get in touch and start your conversation, email me - [email protected].

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This week I'm chatting with Johnny Holden, who alongside Paul McCabe has been running John Cleere’s Bar & Theatre in Kilkenny for a good few years now.

It's part of the first of 12 installments for the Savour Kilkenny Food Provenance Award for 2019.

Johnny’s approach to food has been simple and getting it right from the offset. When we sit down to talk and dig into one of his signature sandwiches, he’s getting ready for the Kilkenny Arts Festival.

You can find them on facebook – it’s facebook.com/cleeres or check out cleeres.com

Next week I’m off to chat with Damian Finnegan, head chef at Statham’s By Pembroke.

If you like the podcasts, leave a review wherever you get yours or better still, if you would like to be part of the conversation, wherever in the world you are – email me – it’s [email protected].

If it’s your first time listening, subscribe, there’s plenty more on the way.

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This latest episode is a long listen as I take a quick tour of Costello's brewery in Kilkenny and chat with founder Gerald Costello about their upcoming spelt lager release.

Over the course of an hour we'll talk about

- Where Costello's are at these days and what's happening in the brewery
- A shift in focus from their first product and adapting to the market
- The testing and development of their new spelt lager
- What the future holds
- The upcoming Kilkenny Craft Beer Festival

For more, check costellosbrewco.ie or visit kenonfood.com for full details, dates and links.

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Seamus O'Hara and Victory Treacy established the Carlow Brewing Company in 1996 and thus the O'Hara's brand was born. From the challenges of getting their first beer on the shelf to exporting in the early noughties, to running pubs and backing events, there's a lot going on at O'Hara's.

If you're a beer drinker or lover or curious about the craft beer sector in Ireland, give this a listen.

The Ken On Food series on KCLR airs 4.10pm on Wednesday afternoons with this first season brought to you in association with Anocht Restaurant and the Kilkenny Design Foodhall.

For more, see kenonfood.com.

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